This time it was the turn of a record-sized shark of a different kind which grabbed the media's attention.

The thresher was caught by the trawler Imogen while out fishing for squid and John Dory, almost four miles south of the Runnel Stone reef, near Land's End.

Skipper Roger Nowell spotted a shoal of horse mackerel on his fish finder, and after shooting his net hauled it back in a few minutes later and was shocked to find the huge 510kg (1,122lb) shark in with the catch.

With its long tapering tale there was no doubt it was a common thresher, Alopias Vulpinus, possibly a world record specimen.

The enormous female fish was very much alive and thrashed around on deck causing £500 worth of damage to the trawler's hydraulics on leaving the net.

After landing it in Newlyn, a lot of people wanted to see this incredible creature, though there were not many takers as far as buying it went - in the end was sold to Smarts Prime Fish for the knockdown price of £255, a mere 50p a kilo.

Smarts let CWT marine wildlife strandings volunteer Rory Goodall measure and record the shark for the trust.

Mr Goodall, who runs wildlife watching trips and tours around Land's End through his company, Elemental Tours, said: "It's fantastic to know that we have such large shark specimens just off our coast. These pelagic sharks are at the top of the food chain and have no natural predators except for humans. It's very good news that this thresher didn't fetch a high price at market, as this will hopefully discourage people from catching these sharks in future.

"Like all large sharks, threshers are slow growing and are therefore threatened by commercial fisheries. Other than for its meat, the sharks are hunted for their liver oil, skin (for leather), and their fins, for use in shark-fin soup."

article copyright THE CORNISHMAN 

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